User blog:Wiskersthcatfish/The Skaldjr RPG: Spitballing Dos
So two long phone conversations and some big chats about what we want to include for archetypes have brought us to a pretty good point of pogression. ThatSnazzle and I have managed to pump a lot of effort into this project so far, and it really looks like something we'll be able to sit down and use at some point... Maybe that's the excitement kind of kicking me in the rear, but most of the other projects we've started like this have fell flat the moment we've tried to get serious about them, which is why I'm so surprised that this has made it this far past square one. This time around, I've got just a touch on game content with a working list of Archetype names and concepts for each of the available races so far. I say working because a lot of them are very nebulously defined; I'm especially worried about the Fatal, who's archetypes were banged out in all of fifteen seconds, and it dosn't really feel correct going into too much detail before we get more information about them from Danley. As for the game systems, I think they're rough, but if we had more game content I'd say we could totally start testing this system like tomorrow. Of course we need to map out everything that archetypes give characters, get down the most basic feats, and also decide what our difficulty ranges are, so the game is still far from playable, but at this point I think most of what needs to be put in is just some hard work and time. Anyway, here's all my notes out in the open. Archetypes Altans - Asshole (thug, raider, brute force fighters), Second-Story Man (catburgler, espianoge, breaking-and-entering), Flyboy (zoomie, cloud skimmer, Flight Specialist/Engineer), Capo (smooth talker/diplomat) Macana - Leopard (crazy ass berzerkers/warriors), Hawk (survivalists, stalkers, ambushers), Turtle (shaman/healer, talk to and control spirits) S'hari - Nimbostrati (pillars, high mages, scholors), Cirrostrati (assassins, enforcers, "black feathers and bloodstains"), Altocumuli (facewreckers) Steef - Stumper (basic warriors, but still fuckin steef, I mean right?) Stranger (rangers, outcasts, more at home with humans, can handle mechanics), Elder (shamen, salve maker) Hodag - Over-Seer (elder technomancer, leaders, administraters, grand inventors), Knocker (theives who steal material for the warren), Irongut (jack-of-all-trades, just need the beer to fuel the job), Grems (stone-cold gearheads, killed on sight by Altan flyboys) Fatale - Scorpian (assassins) Red Sun (scouts) All Mama (shaman), Storm (warriors) Statesman - Company Man (charming, intimidating overseers of the States finge projects), Bronitiates (Shining, virtious faces of the state. Cavalry to the State armies), Musketeers (strictly trained State Soldiers, sometimes they have actual muskets), Gameplay Concepts Attack Bonus: Attack bonus handed out for free after picking an archetype. Ranging between 1d4 and 1d8, with d8s going to the classes with the greatest combat potential. Extra flat bonus derived from physical stat, 1d4 = +1, 1d6 = +2 etc. Defense Bonus: Formula for deriving defense: Flat bonus + physical stat bonus + bonuses from feats + bonuses from armor worn. Physical stat bonus is the same as bonus for attack, but plus one, so 1d6 = +2, 1d8 = +3 etc. Weapons: We want weapons to be interesting and definitive and unique to each other "not just boring stat blocks." While we haven’t worked out what all that means quite yet, there will probably be lists and charts and all kinds of shit. So far swords will probably do a flat 1d6 damage plus a little extra depending on a characters physical stats. Armor: Armor will probably go less defined then weapons, unless we can find reasons to give different armors special uses. We know that we want to pick broad categories that armor can fit into, and also possibly have it give characters damage reduction on top of a flat defense bonus. Critical Hits (and misses): Getting a critical is still a nebulious concept in this game, but we've decided that criticals cannot happen on anything but skill rolls. You can only critically fail or succeed at something when under a certain amount of stress, and skill rolls in this game are designed only to be made when pressed into certain actions. Magic: Magic is left purposefully undefined. There will be levels (probably around ten) and categories or schools of magic (probably also around ten, each school will be spearheaded by one god). Humans will have the ability to cross-specialize in all schools but never reach the highest levels, while non-human races will be able to excel at a few different schools while others will be completely closed off to them. Mana: Mana for characters is equal to your Mental stat (1d8 mental gives 8 mana). Hitting 0 mana for a human could result in death, for more magically tuned races it probably just spells exhaustion. Casting a spell: A lot of what it takes to cast a spell is still up in the air, but what we have so far is this: you have to consider the effect you want, and then come to a consensus on the level of the spell with the trench master. The spell will cost a number of mana equal to the agreed upon level. If you decide to spend no more mana on the spell you must make a roll (or a spin) to see how effective the spell ends up being; pumping more of your mana into the spell could eliminate the need for a spin (or roll). Magicians will also have levels of magic, and we've roughly discussed how this will affect the game; A character who's reached a magicianship level of 2 can cast level 1 spells basically for free (he only has to spin to see if he can get the correct outcome, he also subtracts his level of magicianship from the level of spell he wants to cast in order to find out how much mana he has to spend. So level 2 spells, which once cost him two mana and a spin to cast, now only seep up one point of mana and a spin, or two mana with no spin. Leveling up: A character "levels up" at the end of every single play session. The level up is represented by adding a new feat to your character. Every five sessions players can add two feats instead of just one. If a character has not gained an archetype specific feat in the last four play sessions, they must pick one. In order to trace the amount of feats gained it's recommended that players make tally marks for each in the margin of their character sheet. Feats: Feats (or whatever much better name we end up giving them) will probably become the largest facet of this game when it reaches completion. Feats can be boons, natural gifts, stat bonuses, or special abilities. There will be feats for everything, from raising the number of skills or skill points your character has, to giving him a higher magic level or more total mana, and a bunch of shit in between. Feats will probably be sliced into specific sections in order to make them easier to navigate; as implied above some feats will be specific to certain archetypes probably boiling down to special abilities that will help to define that archetype, while the majority will be more generally available and help to define your character the way you want to play him. Category:Blog posts